|
Husky Ballpark is a college baseball stadium in Seattle, Washington, on the campus of the University of Washington. Opened in 1998, it is the home field of the Washington Huskies of the Pac-12 conference. The playing field was renamed for donor Herb Chaffey in May 2009. Husky Ballpark is located about north of Husky Stadium; the ballpark's left field wall borders wetlands adjacent to Union Bay. The UW's natural grass soccer stadium is adjacent to the north. A new concrete grandstand was constructed after the 2013 season and opened on March 21, 2014, with an approximate seating capacity of 2,500. It formerly had a seating capacity of 1,500 in temporary bleachers. ==History== Opened for pre-season practice in early January 1998, Husky Ballpark hosted its first regular season game on February 27 against Gonzaga.〔 Originally slated for a permanent concrete grandstand, the spectator seating area had temporary bleachers for its first 16 seasons. Construction on the concrete grandstand began after the 2013 season and was completed in March 2014.〔〔(【引用サイトリンク】publisher=University of Washington Athletics )〕 For its first seven seasons, the ballpark's infield was AstroTurf, with the standard cut-out sliding pits at all of the bases. Until 2004, it was the only artificial turf in the conference. When FieldTurf was installed prior to the 2005 season, the dirt sliding pits at the three bases were eliminated. The only cut-out portions that remained dirt are the home plate area and the pitcher's mound. The basepaths and infield "skin" portion, normally dirt on a natural grass field, was gold-colored FieldTurf, & the warning track around the perimeter was purple. The outfield of Husky Ballpark was natural grass from 1998 through 2013; with excellent drainage, the bluegrass, rye, and fescue mix allowed play in all weather. With the renovation, the outfield was converted to FieldTurf for the 2014 season.〔 During the summer months, the ballpark is used extensively by youth, semi-pro, and recreational teams. The combination of an all FieldTurf infield and a natural grass outfield was similar to Goss Stadium at Coleman Field, Oregon State's ballpark in Corvallis, which installed a FieldTurf infield before the 2007 season. The two other Pac-12 ballparks in the Northwest are all synthetic, including the outfield. Bailey-Brayton Field in Pullman installed FieldTurf in the fall of 2003, while Oregon did not return to varsity competition until 2009, and its PK Park in Eugene is similarly configured. The conference expanded to twelve teams in the summer of 2011: Utah plays on a natural grass field at Spring Mobile Ballpark, while Colorado does not participate in baseball. Unlike the other Northwest schools in the Pac-12, the home plate area remained dirt through the 2013 season; the others converted to FieldTurf at the home plate area, leaving just the pitcher's mound as dirt. Following the 2014 renovation, the entire field is now FieldTurf, except for the pitcher's mound, which remains dirt.〔〔 The lighted playing field at Husky Ballpark is oriented in an unorthodox configuration, with the batter and catcher facing southeast, resulting in difficult visual conditions for the fielders on the left side of the diamond for games played near sunset. (The recommended orientation of a baseball diamond is east-northeast.)〔(【引用サイトリンク】publisher=Major League Baseball )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Husky Ballpark」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|